1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a money clip operable for holding and organizing paper currency and the like.
2. Prior Art
Money clips are designed to hold paper currency in an organized folded condition, with quick access. It addition, they may hold credit cards and/or business cards. Some people prefer money clips for holding a small amount of paper money in a clothes pocket, since other money holders, including wallets, bulge the pocket. A money clip should be simple to use, hold the bills securely in a desired orientation, and permit easy insertion and removal of the bills. Examples of disclosures teaching the construction and use of such money clips are presented in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,823,910, 6,453,236, 6,327,749, 6,082,422 5,913,618 and 5,697,131.
A money clip may be used to hold either a single paper bill folded in half or a plurality of such bills. Many money clips that accept a large number of folded bills do not exert sufficient force to hold a single bill in the clip. After a clip has been extended to accept a plurality of bills, the material of a clip can exceed the elastic limits of the spring material and transition to a more or less nonelastic state and assume a new shape. The new distorted shape may provide less holding force on a small number of bills; rendering the clip inoperable for securely holding a small number of bills. As a money clip may be required to hold 1 to at least 20 bills, the clip must be adapted to be elastically deformable over a range of deformation required for storage of a large number of bills.